In Tennessee, if you get pulled over for a DUI (driving under the influence) and the officer asks you to take a blood, breath, or urine test, do you have to take one? What happens if you refuse?

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Implied Consent

Tennessee
law requires you to take a blood, breath, or urine test if you are
arrested for a DUI. Tennessee’s “implied consent” law says that if you
are lawfully arrested by an officer who has probable cause to believe
that you have been driving under the influence, then you consent to
taking a chemical test of your blood, breath, or urine for the purpose
of determining your blood alcohol content (BAC). The
officer gets to choose which test you take and may ask you to take more
than one. The test or tests must be taken as soon as possible from when
you were last driving and you cannot refuse without penalty.

Refusing to Take the Test

1st Offense

2d Offense

3rd Offense

Refusal to take test

1 year license revocation

2 year license revocation

2 year license revocation

Once
you are arrested, the officer should tell you that your license will be
suspended for your refusal. Also, if you are driving with a license
that already was suspended because you had caused an accident where
someone else was seriously injured or killed, then your refusal carries
heavier penalties. In addition to a longer suspension, you will have to
pay a fine and go to jail or to a work house. Later, if you are also
convicted of a DUI – even without evidence of a chemical test – you will
not be allowed to drive without installing an ignition interlock device
on your car.

The
penalties for a first refusal begin with suspension of your license for
one year, unless the current refusal involved an accident where someone
else was seriously injured or killed. If there were serious injury,
then your suspension will last for two years. If someone died, then your
suspension will last for five years. For your second refusal alone, the
suspension will be for two years.

You
may request a hearing to challenge your suspension. If you can prove
that the officer did not tell you the consequences of refusal before he
or she requested a test, then a court will reinstate your license and
cannot make you drive with an ignition interlock device on your car if
you are later convicted of a DUI. You may be able to drive under limited
terms even if you cannot convince the court to reinstate your licnese.
After your license has been suspended, you could ask the court for a
restricted-driving permit that would allow you to drive to work, school,
or to an alcohol-safety program.

In
most situations, if you refuse to take a test then the officer cannot
force you to take one. If the officer finds you unconscious or dead,
however, then he or she can order a test without having to ask you
first.

Should You Refuse to Take a Mandatory DUI Test in Tennessee?

It
usually does not help you to refuse to take a blood, breath, or urine
test when you are arrested. For a first DUI in Tennessee, your license
will be suspended for one year and you will have to pay a fine from $350
to $1,500. If your BAC is .20% or higher, then you have to go to jail
for seven days, too. This is slightly more severe than a year-long
suspension for refusal. Still, refusing the test does not guarantee that
you won’t be convicted – you could be found guilty of a DUI even if
your refusal means that the state does not have proof that your BAC was
over.08%, the legal limit for those over 21. In
fact, the prosecution can use your refusal against you by arguing that
you refused the test because you knew that you were intoxicated and
guilty of DUI.

Get Help With Your DUI

If
you have been arrested on a DUI charge in Tennessee or any other state,
get help from an experienced DUI attorney. Unlike other traffic related
charges, which might be worth fighting without a lawyer, conviction for
a DUI has serious consequences – especially if the incident involved
injury to people or property, or if it’s your second or subsequent DUI.
To avoid or reduce the consequences, your best bet is to find an
attorney who is knowledgeable about your state’s laws and about how the
system works in your county’s court.